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2 Thessalonians 2:9-12, that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, [10] and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. [11] For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, [12] in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth but took pleasure in wickedness.
We live in a world of scams, spam, phishing, vishing, and smishing. AI fakes and every manner of deception work hard, usually to get your money. Several years ago the infamous Bernie Madoff was in the news with his infamous Ponzi scheme. He bilked his friends and acquaintances out of billions of dollars. Some said, “We thought he was god!” He may have looked like an honest man, but he was a deceiver. He died in 2021 while serving a 150-year prison sentence. There are tons of lesser scammers, fakes, frauds, and hackers. Just recently I got a new phone. Everything was great until I clicked on something that blew my phone totally out of kilter. Why, oh why did I click on that bait? I took it to people who know tons more than I do about phones and the friendly fellow took my phone, did something in about 45 seconds, and handed it back like new. Whew!
We live in a world of spiritual deception, which is far worse. Satan is the master deceiver. He started in the Garden of Eden, deceiving Eve into biting on that fruit in spite of what God had said. First he got her to question God’s Word – “Has God really said?” Then he flat out denied God’s Word, “You surely will not die.” Then he twisted God’s Word, “You’ll be like God.” And she bit on his deception. Satan is alive and well on planet earth, and deception is his major mode of operation. He sells lies as truth and often dresses his lies in religious robes. Paul warned us in 2 Corinthians 11:14, “Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.”
Think of all the religious deceptions out there. Joseph Smith said an angel told him where to dig in Palmyra, New York, to find those golden plates. He put on special glasses and you have the Book of Mormon with 17 million members today and 380 temples on six continents. In the seventh century, Muhammed went into a cave near Mecca and supposedly the angel Gabriel dictated the heavenly Quran to him. Today there are two billion Muslims in the world, one-fourth of the world population. How many religious people are told a piece of bread and some wine are turned into the literal body and blood of Christ making each mass a sacrifice of Christ’s body and blood? How many people have been assured their baptism as an infant took away the guilt of their original sin and made them part of the church? How many scientists and professors unquestionably believe in the lie of evolution? And then, like so many of the Jews of Paul’s day, how many people believe the lie that their good deeds will merit them a place in heaven? In Luther’s day near Wittenberg, Johann Tetzel was hawking those indulgences promising people they could buy their relatives out of purgatory. What a scam that was, although God used it to fire up Luther and launch the Reformation!
Satan is the chief deceiver. Jesus calls Satan the father of lies (John 8:44). Paul says the coming Antichrist, empowered by Satan, will deceive the world into believing he is God with his powers, signs, and false wonders.
This morning we’re going to finish our study of the end times by looking more closely at the Man of Lawlessness, the Antichrist, who will rise up in the coming tribulation period. You might think, why spend time on this when we won’t even be here in the tribulation period? Because there are powerful lessons for us to apply right now, especially about defending ourselves from deception. In his book Truth War, MacArthur notes every writer in the New Testament touched on false teaching. God has given us all we need to defend ourselves against false teaching and deception. We’re going to look at where the Antichrist gets his power, why people will follow him, how God will judge people who follow him, and then several lessons from this text.
THE SOURCE OF ANTICHRIST’S POWER
2 Thessalonians 2:9, that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders,
You can see right off the Antichrist will come with the activity or energy of Satan himself. This man is Satan’s effort to gain worship from God’s creatures. Satan tricked Eve into following him and he tried to get Christ Himself to worship him – “I’ll give you the whole world if you’ll just bow down and worship me.” What did Jesus say? “Begone, Satan! For it is written, you shall worship the Lord your God and serve Him only” (Matt. 4:10).
So this Man of Lawlessness is Satan’s human representative. Satan, which means adversary, is the avowed enemy of God. He gives his power to this Man as the final human messiah to deceive the nations As Paul says, he gets his power from Satan himself. One author wrote,
“The chief player and arch-villain of that seven-year Tribulation will be a profoundly wicked and alarmingly clever deceiver who will ultimately be entirely and immediately controlled by Satan.”
WHY THE WORLD WILL FOLLOW HIM – THE DANGER OF DECEPTION
Just like Satan, the Man of Lawlessness’s modus operandi is in one word: deception. He comes with all power and signs and false wonders. Christ himself came with all power and signs and wonders, but no false wonders. This global leader will astonish the world with his Satanic deceptions. John describes Satan’s work as deception…
Revelation 12:9, And the great dragon [Satan] was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
Then John reveals how the false prophet (Antichrist’s frontman) will deceive the world to worship the Antichrist. He begins here speaking of the dragon, Satan, then the beast or Antichrist, and then the False Prophet.
Revelation 13:2b-4,11-14, the dragon gave him his [Antichrist’s) power and his throne and great authority. [3] I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast; [4] they worshiped the dragon [Satan] because he gave his authority to the beast [Antichrist]; and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?” [11] Then I saw another beast [False Prophet] coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb and he spoke as a dragon. [12] He [False Prophet] exercises all the authority of the first beast [Antichrist] in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast [Antichrist], whose fatal wound was healed. [13] He [false prophet] performs great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men. [14] And he [false prophet] deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast [Antichrist], telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast [Antichrist] who had the wound of the sword and has come to life.
Paul doesn’t mention this False Prophet in 2 Thessalonians, but Revelation says he does great signs and tells the world to worship the beast and even has some kind of a human-like computer to keep record of everyone who does and doesn’t worship the Antichrist. This is where the sign on the forehead or right hand comes in. He uses economic sanctions to flush out all who refuse to worship the Antichrist.
Revelation 13:16-17, And he [False Prophet] causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, [17] and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast [Antichrist] or the number of his name.
So the Antichrist’s chief means of gaining global worship is through deception. Deception is selling lies as truth. You may remember England’s Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain going to visit Hitler in Munich and returning to London with a signed paper announcing, “Peace for our times.” Hitler signed it but had no intention of keeping his word. World leaders thrive on deception and lies. So will this wicked world leader. What do we learn?
THE DEFENSE AGAINST DECEPTION – KNOW AND LOVE THE TRUTH
2 Thessalonians 2:10, and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.
Now we’re getting to our defense against deception. Christ Himself warned us.
Matthew 24:24, For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect.
Christ is talking about the Tribulation period in Matthew 24-25, but He also warns us how powerful Satan’s lies can be. What does this tell us about the importance of knowing the truth of God’s Word as your defense? There’s only one way to discern truth from error and that is through the Word of God. But it’s even more than knowing the truth. It’s knowing and loving the truth. Why do people perish according to verse 10? They did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.
You need to know and love the truth of the gospel and the Scriptures. A Bible teaching, gospel proclaiming, Christ exalting, God-centered church is a church of the living God, which is as Paul told Timothy, “the pillar and support of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15). Whoever wrote Psalm 119 knew how important loving the truth is.
- Psalm 119:97, O how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day.
- Psalm 119:113, I hate those who are double-minded, but I love Your law.
- Psalm 119:119, You have removed all the wicked of the earth like dross; therefore I love Your testimonies.
- Psalm 119:127, Therefore I love Your commandments above gold, yes, above fine gold.
- Psalm 119:159, Consider how I love Your precepts; Revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness.
- Psalm 119:163, I hate and despise falsehood, but I love Your law.
- Psalm 119:165, Those who love Your law have great peace, and nothing causes them to stumble.
Isn’t that good? Not only know the truth of Christ and the Gospel but love it. These people, deceived by the Antichrist, have no love for God’s Word. They didn’t receive it. They didn’t put out a welcome mat and with open arms, heart, welcome the Word into their lives. Colossians 3:16 says, “Let the Word of Christ richly dwell within you, make itself at home in your hearts.” Know and love the truth by the power of the indwelling Spirit of God. This is God’s defense for us against deception. Be not deceived. Christian, you have two weapons to avoid deception – the Spirit and the Word. With those weapons, you ought to be growing in your understanding of that Word.
1 Corinthians 2:12, Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God.
Stay on the alert. Don’t be spiritually scammed. The world is filled with spiritual deception. Keep your eyes and ears open. A number of years ago I was sitting outside and here comes a chipmunk. He’s obviously not going to be deceived; he is always on the alert. He sneaks out from his hideout looking every which way, always on guard, always on the alert. Even while he’s stuffing some morsel into his cheeks he’s watching, listening, eyes peeled. The slightest movement and “shiiimp,” he’s gone.
We need God’s wisdom to be able to recognize the deceptive nature of the world in which we live. Satan is alive and well and works mainly through deception. He uses people and false teaching to deceive people. His signs to heaven always lead to hell. Stay on the alert. Paul told Timothy in the last days, “Evil men and imposters will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived” (2 Tim. 3:13).
Why are these people in 2 Thes. 2 deceived and perishing? They had no love of the truth (vs. 10). They should have known and loved the truth but they didn’t. In the tribulation the gospel will go out through the whole world. Revelation 14:6, “And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people.” These people will hear but reject. This is why they are deceived and perishing. They reject the good news that Christ saves sinner. They didn’t receive the love of the truth. Saving faith always includes a love of the truth. Verse 12 says they will be judged because they didn’t believe the gospel. They didn’t want the gospel because it would cut into their love of the world and themselves. They took pleasure in wickedness. This is why people reject the gospel today. John 3:19 says “Men love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil.”
HOW WILL GOD JUDGE THEM?
2 Thessalonians 2:11-12, For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, [12] in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.
A. T. Robertson said this is “the terrible result of the willful rejection of God.” You can’t play games with God in His universe. He makes the rules. He’s in charge and there’s no neutrality. Either you bow your heart to Christ, trust Him as your Lord and Savior, or your heart may become hardened to the gospel. The Bible clearly teaches us there must be no hesitation or vacillating in your response to Christ. Like Joshua said, “Choose you this day whom you will serve.”
2 Corinthians 6:2, Behold, now is “THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,” behold, now is “THE DAY OF SALVATION.”
So what is this deluding influence in verse 11 and why does God send it? This is called God’s judicial hardening. In Romans 1 God’s wrath is revealed against those who suppress the truth in unrighteousness. They don’t want God’s truth. They don’t believe it. They don’t love the truth. Romans 1:25 says they exchange the truth for the lie. They worship the creature rather than the Creator. So, God gives them over to their own desires and wants and self. He gives them what they want. They don’t want God so they don’t get God. They want to be their own god. Make their own rules. Live their lives without God telling them what to do. “Frankly speaking, there is no more dangerous condition for man than to know the truth and refuse to obey it. To do so is to harden the heart and make God’s condemnation sure” (from Got Questions).
And in the end they will be judged by God (vs. 12). They are without grace and mercy. They are under God’s justice; and as rejectors of God He gives them the consequences of their evil. Why do people not believe the truth? They take pleasure in living their own lives without submitting to Christ. In the Tribulation period, they’ll worship Antichrist. Today they inadvertently honor Satan by rejecting God’s glorious Messiah who came to save people from their sins.
SO WHAT?
Let’s wrap this up with three lessons.
- Don’t be deceived. Satan knows how to use lies for his own kingdom of darkness. God has given you exactly what you need to defend yourself from deception – His Word. This Bible tells you where you came from, where you’re going, how to get to heaven, and how to live for God’s glory in the meantime. Know it and love it.
- You can’t stay neutral in your response toward God. Now is the day of salvation. Turn from going your own way and rest your trust firmly in the promise of the gospel, “Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Saving faith always includes the love of the truth. Faith is trust in Christ. And if you trust Christ, you’re going to love Christ for all He did in saving you from the penalty of your sin. He has forgiven you and is taking you to heaven; don’t you love Him? When God gives you that new heart to believe in Christ, you want to hear God’s Word. No one told us to go to church when God saved us. We had a Spirit-given love for God’s Word. Like the author of Psalm 119, is your heart gripped by the love of God’s truth in Christ? By the saving grace of God in Christ, know the Word and love the Word. Pray that God will increase your love for His wonderful truth. This is the one defense against the devil’s deception.